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NCAA super regionals: Wayne Taylor is the hero once again for Stanford

Entering Saturday's elimination game, Stanford had been 0-5 in super regional games played in the Southeast since 2011. The Cardinal finally got that monkey off their back, but it certainly wasn't easy. Wayne Taylor, who has become one of Stanford's all-time great postseason heroes, pushed his team past the Commodores with a walk-off home run in the bottom of the ninth inning.

That shot came on the heels of freshman Cal Quantrill's excellent outing. The Stanford freshman pitched seven brilliant innings despite having a Physics final exam scheduled following the game. He left with the Cardinal leading 4-1 in the top of the eighth frame. Vanderbilt, though, rallied to tie the game at 4-4, thanks to a blown call at first base in the eighth and some control issues for Stanford reliever A.J. Vanegas in the ninth.

"It was a great college baseball game," Cardinal coach Mark Marquess laughed. "It was a little too great for me late."

Stanford, though, was the designated home team by NCAA tournament rule, so they had the final say offensively. That's when Taylor launced his second massive home run of the past week (he blasted a go-ahead shot in the eighth inning against Indiana last Sunday) to force a decisive game 3 tomorrow at noon PT. The Cardinal are one win away from returning to Omaha for the first time since 2008. They've now won four consecutive elimination games. They've also walked off on their opponents' home field twice over the course of the past six days.